Page 23 of Sweeter than Honey

He immediately frowns, and gets a little shy again. “Thank you, Ms. Spina…” he mutters, shrinking in her chair.

Lugging the backpack in one hand, I take my five-year-old in the other, hoisting him out of the chair. He definitely hasn’t gotten enough sleep tonight, and he clings onto me like a little koala.

“You’re very welcome,” Renata replies curtly with a nod of her head.

“I’msosorry, Ms. Espina,” I say. “It will never happen again, I promise.”

Her nostrils flare slightly, noticeable in her otherwise still expression. “See that it doesn’t.”

I nod, and hurry out of her office.

“And Lily,” she calls as I leave. “Take him home, now. You can have the rest of the evening off.”

“O…ok,” I whisper, surprised. She’s never asked me to leave early before.

Without another word, she slams the door.

Chapter 9: Different last names

Renata

There’s a dining room on the west wing of the event floor that Lily booked for our dinner. It’s small, but elegant, with wood paneled walls and a table set for five (although only one seat has a full place-setting). Lexi wanted to use the lounge, but I told her there was no way I was losing the income for an entire evening. It’s bad enough when Celine commandeers it to meet with other vampires. There are hundreds of rooms in this hotel, including her own office, but apparently, both of them think they can usemyrestaurant any time they want to.

“Who pissed onyourgrave?” Celine says, appearing beside me.

I glare at her. “You’re borrowing expressions from Lexi now?”

“Well…it was a good one,” my older sister mutters, putting her hands into the pockets of her tuxedo pants.

“Allof my expressions are good ones,” Lexi chirps. She’s seated already, at the head of the table.

Celine narrows her eyes. “What are you doing? That’s my seat, you sit in the middle.”

“I was here first!” Lexi whines. But Celine gives her a withering glare, and she obeys with a pout. “You’rejustlike dad.”

“I amnotjust like Tudor,” Celine replies. “But I am older than you, and…”

“Ugh, not this lecture again,” she moans, with a big eye roll. “Are you going to mention the dragon shifters of Algernon next? How theyall got killed, because they didn’t strictly adhere to a particularseating chart?”

“Don’t start arguing before dinner’s even started,” I say. “Let’s all be civil tonight. I can’t have this drag out for hours, I’ve got work to get back to.”

“Sheisin a bad mood tonight,” Lexi reports to Celine. She gives her a classic little-sister expression that indicates she’s about to tell on me. “Lily brought her son into the office. Herfive-year-oldson.”

“Oh.” Celine’s expression shifts as she turns to me. “Renata, are you…”

“I’mfine,” I snap. “I’m not talking about it…”

“Talking about what?” says a cheery, familiar voice from the door of the dining room.

It’s our sister, Hallie. Tonight, the soft brown coils of her hair are pulled back into a ponytail, and she wears a long-sleeved purple sweater and dark jeans. Her copper skin glows with a vibrant liveliness that betrays the fact that she is the youngest of us, turned into a vampire only last year.

Hallie’s bright brown eyes widen when she sees the elaborate setting laid out across the lace tablecloth. “Wow, this is so nice!”

“But of course,” Celine says generously with a crisp nod. “We wanted to welcome you home properly.”

With characteristic exuberance, Hallie pulls Celine into a tight hug. My reserved older sister stiffens at the warm gesture, but doesn’t resist. Lexi stifles a laugh before rising from her seat to give Hallie a hug as well.

An enchanting scent and the telltale echo of a living human heart fill the room. A figure appears in the doorway, a young witch, by the smell of magic in the air. She has a pale, freckled face and wavy red hair that cascades down her back. She wears a tight crop top patterned with constellations, a loose, shimmering skirt, and what appears to be an entire flea market’s worth of mismatched jewelry. If I couldn’t smell that she’s a witch, I would still be able to tell.